Our Bay Area roofing professionals recommend skylights, because they add a variety of benefits to your home: They look beautiful. They invite gorgeous, natural light into rooms. They create novel aesthetic possibilities for remodeling.

But how do you maintain skylights effectively? What happens if you don’t keep up with the maintenance? Will your roof develop leaks, mildew and mold? Will your home leach heat (or A/C) and thus drive up your energy bills?

These are great questions. Here are some tips to address skylight maintenance worries:

Follow the manufacturer suggested cleaning regimens. Print out a copy of this regimen, and add it to your calendar to review regularly.

Before you clean, gather all needed equipment, including: ladders, nonabrasive cleaners, cloths, gloves, and a bucket.

When you clean glass, wait until the sun is not overhead – so you can see better and so the glass won’t be heated up to a scalding temperature.

When you apply a cleaning solution, first soak the glass with water and soap; then use a brush or other nonabrasive tool to scrape away debris.

If stains like sap or paint won’t come off with this method, you might need to judiciously use a razor blade. Scrape in one direction, and do your best to avoid scratching the glass.

To clean insect screens: take them down and then spray them with a hose or run them under the sink. Let the screens dry thoroughly before replacing them.

If you need to climb on to the roof – or on to some dangerous areas of your home – to access the skylights, be careful and work with the spotter. Roof work can be surprisingly dangerous, and poor ladder work, the fragility of your roof area, or just general carelessness/negligence can lead to accidents. Also, a badly done skylight cleaning job can actually damage the roof. For instance, if you spill a bucket of cleaning solution near the skylight, the moisture could seep into the wood and cause mildew and mold to form.

For help with skylight maintenance and repair, or for more information about solar roofing, get in touch with the East Bay roofing contractors here at Century Roof and Solar for help. Call us today: 1-888-233-7548.